Replacing a successful head coach is a hard thing to do. In the minds of the administration at Haywood County Schools, they had their man already on staff. Haywood announced on Friday they hiring of Josh Puckett as their new head football coach following the departure of Chris Smith who took the same position at Bartlett in early May.
Smith had highly successful 4-year stint as the leader of the Tomcats that included a 48-8 record, 4 straight Semi-Final appearances including a Title Game appearance, and 4 straight Region Championships. But Puckett brings his own set of bona fides to his new role.
Puckett served as the skipper for the 1A Lake County Falcons from 2013-19, compiling a 59-28 record, 2 Region Titles, 3 Semi-Final appearances, and the 2019 1A State Title. Puckett left Lake County to take the Shelbyville job for 2 seasons, before coming back to West Tennessee this past season, serving as the offensive and defensive line coach for the Tomcats.
Known for his explosive offenses in Tiptonville, Puckett steps into the driver’s seat of a program that has dominated 4A Football in West Tennessee for the past several seasons, and will look to continue the train of success in Brownsville.
